The European Data Protection Board issued an opinion warning that large online platforms offering only a binary 'pay a fee or consent to tracking' choice will, in most cases, fail to obtain valid GDPR consent.
Consent under the GDPR must be freely given. The EDPB's opinion holds that for large platforms a straight pay-or-consent binary rarely meets that bar, and that a genuine, equivalent alternative that does not involve paying a fee should normally be offered.
The guidance reaches well beyond a single business model: it reinforces that consent cannot be bundled, coerced or made the price of access to an essential service.
Platforms relying on consent for behavioural advertising are revisiting their flows; the direction of travel is toward genuine choice and data minimisation.
The information contained within this resource does in no way constitute legal advice. Any person who intends to rely upon or use this information is solely responsible for independently verifying it and obtaining independent expert advice if required.
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